Headlight.



No. 779,068 PATENTED JAN. 3,- 1905-. F. BUCHANAN.

HEADLIGHT.

nrmoummnnzn MAY 31, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 No. 779,068. PATENTED JAN. 3, 1905.

- I. BUCHANAN.

HEADLIGHT.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 31, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

a aa m 22 y flaw-m X fiiibmrw Patented January 3, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK BUCHANAN, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

HEADLIGHT. I

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,068, dated January 3, 1905.

Application filed May 31, 1904:. Serial No. 210,441.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK BUoHANAN, of Dayton, in the county of Montgomery, in the State of Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Headlights, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in headlights similar to that set forth in my pending application, Serial No. 178,557, filed October 26, 1903, but embodying certain alterations and improvements relating to the reflector and manner of supporting the incandescent lamp and also to a means for reducing the intensity of the reflected light. These headlights are particularly useful on cars which travel over railway-lines extending through cities and rural districts. It is desirable under such conditions to employ as strong a light as possible while the car is traveling through the sparsely-settled or rural districts and to reduce the intensity of this light when the car enters the more thickly settled or congested parts of cities and villages, where the streets are usually well lighted. The main objection, however, to the strong light, particularly in congested parts of the city, is its blinding effect upon pedestrians and horses, which often results in serious accidents.

My object, therefore, is to provide a headlight with separate electric lamps capable of giving lights of different intensities, so that the stronger light, or both lamps, may be used while the car is traveling through the country, or a less intense light may be used when the car is traveling through the more densely populated parts of cities and villages.

Another object is to further reduce the intensity of this light by the addition of a translucent screen or glass, which may be moved into. and out of position in front of the usualtransparent glass in front of the reflector.

A still further object is to provide a parabolic reflector-section with one or more cylindrical extensions, one of the extensions being mounted upon a door containing the transparent glass and serving as a retainer for holding said glass in place.

Other objects and uses will appear in the following description.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a headlight embodying the various features of my invention, the translucent screen being shown in its down or inoperative position. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view from front to rear through the main case and reflector, showing the front door in its open position with one of the reflector sections thereon. Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3 3, Fig. 1, except that the translucent screen is shown in its closed position and in section. Fig. 1 is an enlarged sectional view through the front upper part of the case and screen-supporting ring, showing particularly the catch for holding said ring in operative position. Fig. 5 is a sectional view through the hinge connection between the screen-supporting ring and front section or door of the case.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding partsin all the views.

The inclosing case or supporting-frame for the various parts of my invention consists of a rear section 1 and a front section 2, which is hinged at one side, as at 3, to the front end of the rear section 1, the opposite side of said front section being secured by a pin 1. The manner of fastening both sides of the front section to the rear are substantially identical and either may be used for the hinge, the pins 3 and 4 and apertured lugs which receive the same being similar, and the pins in both cases are removable, as best seen in Fig. 1.

A supporting-f rame 5 is mounted in the rear section 1 upon suitable Ways 6 and is removable. through the front end of the rear section 1 when the door 2 is open, said frame being normally held in its operative position by a spring-catch 7, Fig. 2.

A reflector 8 is mounted centrally in the case-section 1 upon the frame 5 and consists of a parabolic section 9 and a cylindrical section 10, the latter being secured to the open end of the parabolic section 9 and serves to concentrate or confine the reflected rays of light, so that they will project forwardly in the form of a pencil of comparatively large diameter to increase the penetrating power of the light. The extension 10 of the reflector protrudes through the open end of the case 1 and into the door-section 2, but is of considerably less diameter than the diameter of the casing, so as not to interfere with the free opening and closing of the door, the object of this protrusion being to meet with a similar cylindrical reflector extension 11, which is mounted on the door 2, without making the latter extension excessively long from front to rear. This reflector extension-11 is of substantially the same diameter as the part and forms a continuation thereof when the door2 is closed and also serves as a retainer for holding the transparent-glass front, as 12, in place in the front end of the door 2. The portion of the door in which this transparent-glass plate 12 is located is reduced in diameter and is provided at its forward end with an inturned flange 13, which constitutes an abutment to hold the glass from outward displacement, the rim of the glass being inclosed in a rubber or other yielding buffer 14.

The front end of the extension 11 is provided with an outturned flange 15, which fits within the reduced extension of the door and abuts against the inner face of the buffer 14: to hold the glass '12 from inward displacement, said extension 11 being held in place by suitable clamps 16, having spring-arms 17, which are impinged against the flange 15, as best seen in Fig. 2.

A circular ring is hinged or pivoted at 21 to the lower side of the front end of the extension 19 of the door, so as to swing laterally in either direction to and from a position in front of the extension 1.9 and is provided with a translucent screen or glass 22, which is held in place by a flange 23 on the front end of the ring 20 and a split retaining-ring 24:, the rim of the translucent glass 22 being inclosed by a rubber or equivalent buffer 25, and the split ring 24 is held in place by clamps 26. The ring 20 and its translucent plate 22 are respectively substantially the same diameter as the extension 19 and its transparent glass 12, and it is now apparent that this translucent glass may be swung to and from a position in front of the transparent glass 12 as the frame or ring 20 is rocked upon its pivot 21, so as to reduce the intensity of the reflected light or permit its full intensity, as may be desired.

An electric-arc lamp 27 is mounted in the focus of the parabolic reflector-section 9 with its carbons arranged in the same plane at an angle other than a right angle with the focal axis of the reflector, so that the crater of the upper carbon faces the focus of the reflector for the purpose of giving a strong or intense light.

The reflector extension 10 is provided with an opening 28 in its bottom side, in which is mounted an incandescent electric lamp 29, having its socket 30 secured to the underlying portion of the frame 5, the socket extending through the opening 28, so that the bulb of the lamp may be readily removed or inserted when desired. This incandescent lamp stands in an upright position in front of the arc-lamp 27, and these two lamps are connected in the electric-power circuit by separate switches not necessary to herein illustrate or describe, but whereby either lamp may be used independently of the other or both may beused simultaneously, if desired.

It is now evident that when the car is traveling through rural districts the arc-lamp may be used in connection with the transparent glass 12 to give as strong a light as possible and that when entering the more congested parts of cities or villages the translucent screen 22 may be moved to a position in front of the transparent glass 12, or its screen may be left down, as seen in Fig. 1, and the arc-lamp turned off and the incandescent lamp or light substituted. In some instances it may be desired to use both of these lamps, in which case the screen 22 may be brought into use when the car is passing through the thickly-populated districts.

It will be observed that the reflector extension 11 is mounted upon and moved with the door-section 2 of the inclosing case and that when the door is closed the inner end of the section 11 moves into close proximity to or abuts against the outer end of the reflectorsection 10, thus forming a continuation of the cylindrical part of the reflector from the parabolic section 9 to the transparent glass 12.

The screen-frame 20 is held in its operative position with its glass 22 in front of the glass 12 by means of a spring-catch 30, which may be readily released by hand to permit the frame 20 to drop by gravity to the position seen in Fig. 1.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a headlight, a case open at one end and a door hinged to said open end, in combination with a frame mounted in the case and removable through its open end, a reflector and an electric-arc lamp both mounted on the frame and removable therewith, and a cylindrical extension of the reflector mounted on the door and movable therewith toward and from the former reflector.

2. In a headlight, the combination with a case open at one end and having lengthwise guides, a frame slidable on the guides through the open end of the case, a reflector mounted on the frame, an electric-arc lamp having the crater of its upper carbon facing the focus of the reflector, an electric incandescent lamp also mounted on the frame, out of range of the rays of the arc-lamp, and a door hinged to the open end of the case and having a cylindrical reflector forming an extension of the first-named reflector when the door is closed.

3. In a headlight, the combination with a case open at one end and provided with a door having a transparentglass, of a reflector in the case, a cylindrical reflector on the door forming a continuation of the first-named reflector, an electric-arc lamp in said first-named reflector-case section and an incandescent electric lamp between the first-named reflector and cylindrical reflector.

&. In a headlight, the combination with a case having an opening in one end and guides extending inwardly from said opening, a sliding frame movable on said guides and through said opening, a reflector mounted on the frame and facing the opening, an arc-lamp mounted on the frame and having its carbons inclining forwardly and upwardly in the same straight line, whereby the crater of the upper carbon faces the focus of the reflector, and an incandescent electric lamp also mounted on said removable frame in front of the crater end of the upper carbon and out of range of the arcrays of light.

5. In a headlight, a case consisting of a rear section and a front section hinged thereto and containing a transparent glass, a ring hinged to the front section and containing a translucent glass movable to and from a position in front of the transparent glass, a frame removably mounted in the rear section, a reflector mounted on the frame, and an electric-arc lamp mounted in the focus of the reflector.

6. In combination with the case-section and reflector of a headlight, said reflector having a cylindrical extension, of a lamp in the reflector-case section, a door hinged to the casesection, a screen on the door movable to and from-a position in front of the reflector, and an additional cylindrical extension for the reflector mounted in the door to swing therewith to and from the first-named extension.

7. In a headlight, a case consisting of a rear section open at its front end and having a guide extending rearwardly from said open end, a door hinged to the open end and having a transparent glass, a sliding frame mounted upon said guide, a reflector mounted on the frame and provided with a cylindrical extension having an opening in one side, an extension for the reflector mounted upon the door, and a lamp mounted on said frame and projecting through the opening in one sideof the first-named extension.

In witness whereof Ihave hereunto set my hand this 19th day of May, 1904.

FRANK BUCHANAN Witnesses:

H. E. CHASE, MILDRED M. Nor'r. 

